Tent-like garment



Dec. 15, 1970 D. CHAPMAN TENT-LIKE GARMENT Filed July 25, 1968 INVENTOR. DOA/.410 vCAMP/MA/V By/yzflkuj ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,546,708 TENT-LIKE GARMENT Donald Chapman, Chalfont St. Giles, England, assignor to Uniroyal Limited, Edinburgh, Scotland, a corporation of Scotland Filed July 25, 1968, Ser. No. 747,584 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Dec. 12, 1967, 56,350/ 67 Int. Cl. A41d 3/08 US. Cl. 2-89 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A protective garment having a top portion supported by the wearers head and a skirt portion suspended from the top portion for enveloping, at will, a part of or all of the wearers body. A transversely extending bottom wall is provided with an opening through which the garment may be donned and dotted.

This invention relates to a protective garment, particularly a garment which envelops substantial portions of a wearers torso while permitting substantial freedom of movement by the wearer.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a garment which will protect the wearer from the elements and the like, while permitting the wearer substantial freedom of movement within the confines of the garment.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a garment useful for watching sporting events and also for engaging in such activities as angling and bird watching.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a garment of the above type which is readily collapsible and easily transportable in a collapsed condition.

According to the invention there is provided a protective garment adapted to be suspended from and entirely supported by the head of the wearer and which has a top portion, a skirt portion and a transversely extending bottom wall together defining a compartment in which the wearers entire body may fit. The transverse bottom wall has a substantially central opening through which the wearers head and upper torso are inserted for donning the garment. When supported from the wearers head, the garment envelops the upper half of the wearers torso leaving the legs substantially free so that the wearer may comfortably walk while the garment is worn. When desired, the legs may be withdrawn through the opening provided therefor into the compartment defined by the garment. In the latter event the wearer may sit or kneel inside the garment which assumes a tent-like configuration with the bottom wall resting on the ground and the remainder of the garment still supported by the wearers head.

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 shows the garment according to the present invention supported from the head of a wearer, with the wearers legs extending outwardly therefrom permitting the wearer to walk;

FIG. 2 shows the garment with the wearers feet withdrawn into the interior thereof and the bottom wall of the garment resting on the ground;

FIG. 3 shows a partial sectional transverse view of the bottom wall and the means of connecting the bottom wall to the skirt portion of the garment; and

FIG. 4 shows the garment in collapsed, carrying condition.

As seen in FIG. 1 the garment 1 has a top portion 2 adapted to be carried on the head of a wearer. A skirt portion 3 is suspended from top portion and depends downwardly and preferably outwardly thereof. A bottom ice wall 4 having a substantially central opening 5 defined by an expansible and contractible means preferably in the form of an elastic band 6, extends transversely of the skirt 3 and forms therewith an internal chamber.

A plurality of endless, substantially coaxial, reinforcing members preferably in the form of rigid rings 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d and 7c, of progressively increasing diameter, viewed in the direction from the top toward the bottom of the garment, maintain the garment in desired shape when suspended from the head of the wearer (FIG. 1). The members 7a, 7b, 7c, etc., need of course not be circular but may be eliptical or square, or of any other desired shape. In the embodiment shown, the tent-like garment 1 having substantially circular reinforcing members assumes a bell-shape when worn, i.e., when in expanded condition. When the garment is collapsed the reinforcing members telescope together (FIG. 4) so as to form a substantially flat plate-like structure which is easy to carry.

A handle 8 is suitably connected by any convenient means such as sewing, heat sealing, etc. to the lowermost reinforcing element 7e, for convenient carrying of the collapsed garment.

The enveloping material of skirt 3, top portion 2 and bottom wall 4 is preferably a plastic or a plastic coated fabric which has weatherproofing qualities such as the materials used for rain wear. According to one embodiment of the invention annular sections 3a of such material are stitched or otherwise conveniently fastened together along their adjacent edge portions (FIG. 3). Preferably a pair of rows of stitching 10- and 11 extend annularly along inwardly bent adjacent edge portions of contiguous strips 3a of the flexible material and serve also to connect the corresponding reinforcing elements 7a, 7 b, etc., to the skirt material (FIG. 3). The bottom wall 4 as well as the top portion 2 are similarly connected, by stitching, to the lowermost and uppermost reinforcing members, respectively,

Where opaque flexible material is used as the enveloping material for skirt 3 it is desirable to provide a visor 12 in the uppermost region of the garment i.e., at approximately eye level of the wearer. A plurality of air holes 13 are also preferably provided in the visor region.

The compartment formed within the garment 1 is chosen to be sufficiently large to permit freedom of movement of the wearers hands therein in standing position (FIG. 1) and also to permit substantial freedom of movement therein of the wearers entire body, including the wearers legs when the legs have been withdrawn into the compartment and'the bottom wall 4 rests on the ground (FIG. 2). It will be apparent that one or more utensils such as eating utensils or even a small folding seat or the like can conveniently be carried inside the compartment if desired.

A suitable tie string 14 (FIG. 4) may be provided for maintaining the garment in flattened shape for carrying thereof. When it is desired to use the garment it is merely necessary to untie the string 14 and place ones head, arms and shoulders through the opening 5 in much the same manner as putting on a sweater. With the arms inside the now formed compartment the bottom wall 4 may be pressed downwardly resulting in expansion of the elastic material 6 so as to permit passage of portions of the wearers torso through the opening 5. With the bottom wall pushed down to the vicinity of the hips and the elastic band fitting snugly about the upper portions of the wearers thighs the garment is entirely supported from the wearers head and assumes the igloo-shape illustrated in FIG. 1. The wearers legs are free to move for walking or running from one location to another, while the wearers torso is protected from the elements and the like.

If it is desired to remain in one location for an extended period of time the legs may be withdrawn into the compartment formed by the garment (FIG. 2). In so doing the bottom wall 4 comes to rest on the ground and forms a floor for the wearer to sit or kneel on. While still supporting the garment with the head the wearer now has substantial freedom of movement within the compartment. Thus for example the wearer may change his clothing while protected from view, or the wearer may sit, eat, or perform a multitude of other functions entirely within the confines of the garment.

When worn, the garment is preferably conical in shape, the members being circular and increasing in diameter from the upper members to the lower members. This shape has particular advantages from the collapsibility viewpoint, as the circular members nest one inside another when the garment is collapsed. Furthermore, the conical shape gives a wide base to the garment, which can then accommodate a collapsible stool to enable the wearer to sit inside the garment, the wearers legs having been drawn up through the orifice in the web. The garment is still supported by the wearers head in the sitting position, and the flexibility of the material allows the garment to adjust to the height of the wearer, the base of the garment resting on the ground so that the whole of the wearer is protected. Shapes other than conical are, of course, possible, and the garment may be cylindrical with a circular, elliptical, square or other cross-section.

Preferably the reinforcing members are made of rigid material, although a semi-rigid material capable of holding the required shape can also be used as these members are not load-bearing. The material may be metal or plastic, and a As" diameter circular section light metal alloy is particularly suitable. While the flexible material is preferably stitched to the reinforcing members, if plastic members are used, and a plastic material is also used for the flexible covering, the two may be joined by frequency or heat welding. The piece of fabric 9 covering the head of the wearer has an internal slip finish so that the wearer may turn his head freely from side to side without rotating the garment. The fabric itself may provide this finish, as certain plastic materials do, or a separate lining may be stitched in, comprising a non-slip material, the lining forming, in effect, a skullcap. The diameters of the upper hoops 7a and 7b are such that there is sufficient space between the eyes of the wearer and the visor to accommodate a pair of binoculars. The garment thus forms a versatile covering to protect a wearer from wind and rain, and provide sufficient room within the garment for full freedom of movement of the head and arms.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. An expansible and collapsible bell-shaped garment comprising in combination:

a top portion adapted to be supported by the wearers head;

a skirt portion depending from said top portion and adapted to substantially fully enclose substantially the entire torso of the wearer, reinforcing means located in the region of the bottom of said skirt portion for holding the bottom thereof in spread out condition; and

4 a transversely extending bottom wall portion connected to said skirt portion in the bottom region thereof and being provided with a single substantially central expandable opening adapted to permit portions of the wearers upper torso to pass therethrough for donning the garment and thereafter to snugly engage the central portion of the wearers body, said top portion, said skirt portion, and said bottom wall portion together defining an internal chamber of sufiicient size to permit entry thereinto of the wearers entire body, through said central opening, whereby when so de sired the wearer can comfortably sit in said chamber with said bottom wall portion resting on the ground.

2. The garment according to claim 1 wherein said skirt portion comprises flexible sheet material.

3. The garment according to claim 2, said skirt portion further comprising axially spaced collapsible reinforcing means connected to said sheet material for permitting said skirt to be expanded and collapsed axially between a com partment-forming wearing condition and a substantially flat carrying condition.

4. The garment according to claim 3 wherein said reinforcing means comprises a plurality of endless reinforcing members spaced axially of and connected to said flexible sheet material of said skirt, said reinforcing members increasing in size in the direction from the top toward the bottom of the garment.

5. The garment according to claim 4 wherein said reinforcing members are substantially rigid annular rings of downwardly increasing diameter.

6. The garment according to claim 3 wherein said top portion and said bottom wall also comprise flexible sheet material, said sheet material having weather resistant characteristics.

7. The garment according to claim 1 wherein said bottom wall comprises an annularly disposed radially extensible and contractible means defining said opening, whereby said opening may be expanded in size to permit portions of the wearers upper torso to pass therethrough for donning the garment and thereafter will automatically contract to fit snugly against the wearers body.

8. The garment according to claim 1, wherein said top portion comprises an interior head-engaging portion pro vided with anti-friction means for permitting turning movement of the wearers head without transfer of such movement to the garment, said garment further comprising a transparent plastic window in the region of said top portion and a carrying handle in the region of said bottom wall.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,197,240 9/1916 Smith 2'--47 2,412,415 12/ 1946 Navor 284 2,649,584 8/1953 Chappell 22 FOREIGN PATENTS 194,222 3/ 1923 Great Britain 2-87 577,988 6/1946 Great Britain 289 1,057,246 10/1953 France 284 397,562 8/1965 Switzerland 22 ALFRED R. GUEST, Primary Examiner 

